In the previous post I started outlining those family members who had participated as soldiers during the Civil War. We looked at Jacob who appears to have soldiered through the entire war joining first the 4th Pennsylvania Infantry only a week after the confederates fired on Fort Sumter. After his 90 day tour of duty, he appears to have then joined the 53rd Pennsylvania Infantry for a year, then for the remainder of the war he was a trooper with the 17th Pennsylvania Cavalry. Joining the 17th with him were his brother Albert and cousin Jefferson C. Schanely.

Two family members were soldiers withing this regiment. Samuel M. Shanely & Jacob Shanely were both soldiers in Company G. There is reason to believe that Samuel actually was taking another draftees place. That is he voluntarily took the place of another person who had been drafted. This was a common practice and done for a considerable price.

It has been said that Samuel served in the artillery and became deaf, as was common among artillerymen. This deafness contributed to his death when he was unable to hear the whistle of an oncoming train outside of Quakertown, PA years after the war.

Jacob Shanely served in the same company as Samuel and served as a Musician. The duty of a musician was not necessarily easy duty. These guys walked into battle, facing long lines of armed infantry and artillery bombardment …. but armed with a drum or brass instrument… not a rifle. In my opinion this was the real downside of this duty.

Samuel would have been the son of Abraham Bierbrauser Schoenly & Maria Moyer. Samuel had a brother Jacob and although we can’t know for sure, he may have joined company G with his brother. If this is the case, Samuel and Jacob would have been first cousins to Albert & Jacob Schanely of the 17th discussed above.

The Soldiers & Sailors website has this to say about the 167th Pennsylvania Infantry:

SERVICE.-Duty at Suffolk till May, 1863. Action at Deserted House, Va., January 30. Siege of Suffolk April 11-May 4. Suffolk April 19. Operations on Seaboard & Roanoke Railroad May 12-26. Holland House, Carrsville, May 15-16. Dix’s Peninsula Campaign June 27-July 7. Expedition from White House to Bottom’s Bridge July 1-7. Baltimore Cross Roads July 2. Moved to Washington, D. C., July 8; thence into Maryland and joined 1st Army Corps, Army of the Potomac, July 15. Pursuit of Lee beyond the Rappahannock July 15-24. Mustered out August 12, 1863.
Lastly we need to mention Josiah -or- Jessie Schonley who served in the 175th Pennsylvania Infantry Regiment, Company ‘H’. On the muster roll he is listed as: Jesse Schenly, company ‘H’. Josiah (Jessie) Schonly was the son of George Schanely and Rebbecca (Voegly) Fegly.

SERVICE.-Duty at Suffolk, Va., till December 28, 1862. Moved to New Berne, N. C., December 28-January 1, 1863, and duty there till April, 1863. Expedition from New Berne to Trenton, Pollocksville, Young’s Cross Roads and Swansborough March 6-10. Operations on the Pamlico April 4-6. Expedition to relief of Little Washington April 7-10. Expedition to Swift Creek Village April 13-21. Garrison duty at Little Washington till June. Moved to Fortress Monroe, Va., thence to Harper’s Ferry, W. Va., and to Frederick, Md. Mustered out August 7, 1863.